Friends is a timeless show. It has been almost 7 years since it ended its 10 year run, but to many of us, Friends will remain on our list of favorite shows of all time. Why? Because it made us laugh when we couldn’t even smile. It made us cry till our tears dried. It was simply perfect.

Over the course of 236 amazing episodes, there are some that I can watch forever. Season 1 wasn’t necessary my favorite, but it had a few incredible episodes.

Here are the top 5 (in my opinion) classical episodes of season 1:

1.01: The One Where It All Began (AKA The One Where Monica Gets a Roommate)

What:

When Rachel leaves her fiance at the alter, she runs to the only person she knows in the city, her high-school best friend, Monica. After arguing with her father about what she did, Rachel decides she wants to do it on her own without the help of her parents and moves in with Monica becoming the sixth member of the group.

Why:

The title says it all. It’s where it all began. It’s where we met one the funniest most entertaining ensemble on television. We got to meet the romantic control-freak that is Monica, the spoiled naive Rachel, the geeky yet charming Ross, the sarcastic yet self-aware Chandler, the womanizer that is Joey, and of course the always eccentric Phoebe. We fell in love with them right then and there. I will forever be grateful to this episode because it’s where one of my favorite TV shows of all time began – 18 years ago.

1.09: The One Where The Underdog Got Away

What:

Ross and Monica’s parents travel to Puerto Rico on Thanksgiving forcing Monica to host her first Thanksgiving for her brother, Phoebe, Chandler, who hates Thanksgiving. Rachel wants to go to Vale with her parents, and Joey wants to spend the holidays with his parents as well. But he poses for a VD ad, so his parents think he actually has VD and they take their invitation back. During the Thanksgiving parade, the Underdog gets away and they all climb up to the roof to see it. The problem? Rachel thinks Monica has the keys and Monica thinks Rachel has them so they get locked out of their own apartment. The food burns, and Rachel misses her flight. So the gang ends up celebrating their first Thanksgiving together.

Why:

If there’s one tradition Friends was faithful to for 10 years, it’s disastrous Thanksgivings. And the tradition started with this episode. At the end of the episode, they realized that they may not have their family around them, but they have each other. And that’s all that counts. I still get goosebumps every time I watch it.

1.17: The One With Two Parts (2)

What:

When Rachel hurts her ankle while removing the Christmas lights, Rachel and Monica are forced to switch identities so that Rachel can use Monica’s insurance. Things become complicated when the two doctors that treated Rachel – as Monica – ask the girls out. Meanwhile, Phoebe is still upset that Joey is dating Ursula especially when Ursula starts giving Joey the cold shoulder.

Why:

Every time Rachel and Monica fight, I laugh out loud. Those two are basically any two best friends in the real world. Their relationship is so genuine and that’s why I love it. When they start arguing because the whole “switching identity” thing, they start revealing each others’ embarrassing secrets to the two very handsome doctors that asked them out, portrayed by non-other than George Clooney and Noah Wyle who were on ER at the time. So the episode was basically all kinds of epic! At the end of the episode, Phoebe pretends she’s Ursula so she can end things between them without hurting Joey. AND THEN HE KISSES HER. It’s a shame those two didn’t end up together.

1.19 The One With All The Poker

What:

Rachel is applying to jobs because she’s sick of being a waitress. The girls want to play Poker with the boys because they believe it’s not just a “boys” game. Even though they fail repeatedly to learn the game, Rachel and Ross compete until the end.

Why:

This episode of probably one of my favorite episodes from all the seasons. Why? Because any girls vs. boys Friends‘ episode is HILARIOUS! Especially if the boy and the girl are Ross and Rachel. The chemistry they had before being a couple was even more sizzling than during or after – so freakin’ adorable! At that point during the season, you’re just screaming at Rachel to notice Ross who loses on purpose against Rachel when he discovers that she lost the job she was applying to. I HAD SO MANY FEELINGS.

1.24 The One Where Rachel Finds Out

What:

It’s Rachel’s birthday! But Ross is traveling to China because of a “big bone” museum-related problem. During her birthday celebrations, Rachel opens Ross’ gift and it turns out he got her an antique artifact. Chandler says its normal. He always brings lavish gifts to the women HE’S IN LOVE WITH. Rachel must decide if she wants to be with him or not.

Why:

Why? Are you seriously asking that question? It’s the episode where Rachel found out Ross’ in love with her. If there’s one epic couple in TV history, it’s THOSE two! We were losing it through the episode. It was epic. We just wanted to scream at Rachel to go run for Ross. And when she did – a week later – , we saw Ross returning from China – not alone, though. Ugh, I hated Julie so much at that moment.

Honorable Mentions:

1.04 The One With George Stephanopoulos

1. 11 The One With Mrs. Bing

1.15 The One With The Stoned Guy

What about you? What are your favorite episodes from season 1 of Friends?

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Heba could watch television forever. And she LOVES writing about it. She was never meant to be born in a land so far away from TV Land! Her favorite shows are Mad Men, The Vampire Diaries, Happy Endings, Community, Cougar Town and MUCH MUCH more. Follow her on twitter: @ClumsyHibz